Paul Freeman

Partner

Overview

Paul Freeman is a partner in Crowell & Moring’s New York office and a member of the firm’s Environment and Natural Resources and Government Contracts groups. He brings two decades of diverse experience advising clients in the energy, maritime, and aerospace and defense industries on a range of issues, with a primary emphasis on matters involving enforcement defense, litigation, and risk management.

Paul routinely advises clients in response to investigations by, or inquiries from, a range of regulators, primarily the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), and also including the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Internal Revenue Service, the U.S. Department of Defense Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and state attorneys general.
 
Over the past several years Paul has represented a wide range of fuel suppliers, commodities traders, and other market participants in matters arising under the federal Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program, including the RFS Quality Assurance Program and the ongoing representation of clients currently confronting enforcement by EPA and DOJ under the RFS regime. 

Extending his risk management and investigations practice across multiple industrial sectors, Paul also counsels Fortune 50 defense contractors on compliance with aspects of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), including the mandatory disclosure rule, and he routinely conducts internal investigations involving supply chain risks, ethics, quality systems, contract compliance, and potential false claims.

Prior to joining Crowell & Moring, Paul was counsel at a major global law firm.

Career & Education

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    • Environmental Protection Agency
      Office of General Counsel Honors Program, 1997
    • Environmental Protection Agency
      Office of General Counsel Honors Program, 1997
    • St. Lawrence University, B.A., cum laude, 1995
    • Vermont Law School, J.D., 1998
    • Vermont Law School, M.S.E.L., cum laude, 2001
    • St. Lawrence University, B.A., cum laude, 1995
    • Vermont Law School, J.D., 1998
    • Vermont Law School, M.S.E.L., cum laude, 2001
    • New York
    • Connecticut
    • District of Columbia
    • U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York
    • U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
    • U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut
    • New York
    • Connecticut
    • District of Columbia
    • U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York
    • U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
    • U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut

Paul's Insights

Client Alert | 7 min read | 03.11.24

New Federal and State PFAS Requirements Pose Unique Challenges to the Government Contracting Community

A wave of recent changes in federal and state law pertaining to PFAS chemicals is likely to present both immediate and long-term challenges to the government contracting community. At the federal level, contractors that import products, parts, packaging, equipment or other articles with components that contain PFAS must confront new and extensive regulatory reporting requirements relating to such imports going back to 2011, and they must do so by May 2025. At the state level, a growing list of states are enacting total bans on the sale and distribution of such products and components. On top of this flurry of environmental regulatory activity, the Biden Administration continues to direct federal agencies to develop procurement strategies that prioritize the purchase of PFAS-free articles as part the Administration’s broader effort to leverage the federal procurement function in pursuit of climate and sustainability policy objectives....

Recognition

  • Law360: Practice Group of the Year – Government Contracts, 2019

Paul's Insights

Client Alert | 7 min read | 03.11.24

New Federal and State PFAS Requirements Pose Unique Challenges to the Government Contracting Community

A wave of recent changes in federal and state law pertaining to PFAS chemicals is likely to present both immediate and long-term challenges to the government contracting community. At the federal level, contractors that import products, parts, packaging, equipment or other articles with components that contain PFAS must confront new and extensive regulatory reporting requirements relating to such imports going back to 2011, and they must do so by May 2025. At the state level, a growing list of states are enacting total bans on the sale and distribution of such products and components. On top of this flurry of environmental regulatory activity, the Biden Administration continues to direct federal agencies to develop procurement strategies that prioritize the purchase of PFAS-free articles as part the Administration’s broader effort to leverage the federal procurement function in pursuit of climate and sustainability policy objectives....

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Paul's Insights

Client Alert | 7 min read | 03.11.24

New Federal and State PFAS Requirements Pose Unique Challenges to the Government Contracting Community

A wave of recent changes in federal and state law pertaining to PFAS chemicals is likely to present both immediate and long-term challenges to the government contracting community. At the federal level, contractors that import products, parts, packaging, equipment or other articles with components that contain PFAS must confront new and extensive regulatory reporting requirements relating to such imports going back to 2011, and they must do so by May 2025. At the state level, a growing list of states are enacting total bans on the sale and distribution of such products and components. On top of this flurry of environmental regulatory activity, the Biden Administration continues to direct federal agencies to develop procurement strategies that prioritize the purchase of PFAS-free articles as part the Administration’s broader effort to leverage the federal procurement function in pursuit of climate and sustainability policy objectives....